Black Metal Cheat Sheet: Underground Overlords Infiltrate the Masses

From the dawn of its inception in the early '80s, black metal's allure has lain in its evil infamy as much as -- if not more than -- its distinct sound. As the new wave of British heavy metal was invading the states, European bands Venom and Bathory were taking the same heavy blues-based rock 'n' roll templates in another direction, adding raw emotion, grueling speed and pagan/Satanic subjectivity. In 1982 Venom gave the dark genre its name with Black Metal, forging the schematics of what would later become death metal and go even further into the black.

Though associated with Satanism for shock value, black metal's salad days weren't as evil as its second wave. Then a violent counterculture in Norway became active in the genre, and church-burning, murder, suicide and other horrific crimes became notorious elements of the scene (see: Burzum and Mayhem for further reading). Corpse paint and spikes became black metal fashion around this time, making the malevolent music all the more frightening and its devotees easier to spot. Despite its history and headlines, black metal's sonic influence has reached every corner of the wide-spanning metal umbrella.

Croaking growls; urgently fast, heavily distorted guitars; emphasized double bass; and blast-beats mark black metal's signature style, which evolved to incorporate keyboards in the early '90s with bands like Immortal and Emperor. The new school has taken all that into account when concocting their brew of blackened metal.

Making some of the biggest waves in the band pool are Nachtmystium and Wolves in the Throne Room with their awesome antics of melting down black metal and stirring in psychedelic rock and ambient post-metal, thus forging their own blackened brands. Nachtmystium 's Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1 was one of the best albums to come out of 2008, and though 2007's Two Hunters was slept on, the album is still gaining momentum. Another favorite is Intronaut's Prehistoricisms, which took moody prog metal to blackened territories.

But it's not just the new school that's experimenting with black metal. Once black metal Vikings, Enslaved have increasingly moved in a progressive direction, taking their go-forth-and-battle foundation and expanding it further into the realm of prog with Vertebrae. While Opeth are on a similar path, Watershed's melancholia and radio friendliness make their direction more like progressive black metal lite (sorry, superfans). Other black metal mainstays (and politically unsavvy head-turners) Darkthrone are also moving forward, taking their album New Wave of Black Heavy Metal further with Dark Thrones and Black Flags -- a surprisingly excellent blackened punk-metal offering.

Don't get us wrong, there are many true black metal bands still kicking -- check out Norwegian supergroup Keep of Kalessin's Kolossus; the re-releases of Casus Luciferi and Rabid Death's Curse by German Satanists Watain; and of course the latest black 'n' roll effort from Norway's devilish duo Satyricon, The Age of Nero.

Black metal overload? Our bad. Check out this playlist to hear what we're babbling about!